


Unchained Melody

by echo (echoflowertea)



Series: Open Requests [16]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Female Reader, Reader Is Not Frisk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-23
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-10 12:52:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7845820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/echoflowertea/pseuds/echo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You’ve got suspicions about your boyfriend’s late night activities. Are they well funded or not?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unchained Melody

**Author's Note:**

> **prompt** : Sans x Pottery class I am fucking wasted after seeing **[that vine](http://echoflowertea.tumblr.com/post/148200996770/late-night-undertale-dederants-amythe3lder)** help it must be done

“Sans? Where are you going?”

He paused from putting his shoes on near the door. Grinned at you from his spot, sweat beading down his browbone. He hadn’t expected you to still be up. He thought that maybe you’d just fallen asleep on the couch or accidentally left the TV on after trudging to bed. He glanced around the room, clearly uncomfortable, a slight flush to his cheekbones and guilt spread across his normally mischievous features.

“heh. didn’t see ya there.”

“I was waiting up for you.” You leaned forward, putting your whole body weight on the back of the couch as you gazed at him accusingly. “Is there something you wanna tell me?”

This was a trap. One of those relationship traps. Humans did it ALL the time, and he wasn’t going to fall for it. “nah. see ya.”

“SANS!”

He was gone. Disappeared in the blink of an eye. Oh, he must’ve been really annoyed with you cornering him like this, because he’d actually done the time stuff.

You retreated from your spot and slunk more into the couch, staring up at the ceiling with your brows furrowed.

Sans’ secret outings were a fairly new thing. Enough that your suspicion was just. Your boyfriend was a guy who knew what he liked and stuck to his guns. He went to bed late, slept in late, hung around the house when he wasn’t at work, and once in a while dipped into his savings to go to his favorite bar. He splurged on his friends and family, and had been one of the most attentive people in your life.

It all started two weeks ago.

You’d woken up in the middle of the night to get a glass of water. Nothing major. You crawled out of your warm bed, trudged down the stairs, and ambled to the fridge. Pulling it open forced you to squint as the light cut through the welcomed darkness. You were just about to pour yourself something when you heard the door click shut.

Hmm?

You walked over to the front door. Was that…Sans? He looked like he was getting into his car and pulling out. You stood there, blearily trying to make sense of the situation, chugging down what was in the glass. You thought that maybe he’d just been called into work, or he needed to grab something at the store for tomorrow since you were going to a party. So you slunk back to bed and crashed out.

It happened again just a few days later.

Sans came downstairs with his wallet shoved in his jacket pocket. He didn’t seem to notice that you were on the couch with Papyrus, the two of you sitting through another MTT brand special. You thought he was going to join you, but he slipped outside before you could call out to him.

The show wasn’t even interesting in the first place, but now it was the last thing you wanted to put all your attention into. You shook Papyrus’ shoulder.

“Hey Paps, where did Sans go?”

“I’M NOT SURE. HE IS VERY SECRETIVE SOMETIMES. PERHAPS HE IS DOING SOMETHING ROMANTIC FOR YOU.”

That was giving him a lot of credit. He wasn’t really into traditional displays of affection. His idea of explaining what he felt for you was through a scientific journal article on human emotions regulated through various regions of the brain. It was so convoluted and complicated that you couldn’t help but smile through every single paragraph. He’d been hanging onto your every word as you read it to yourself.

He didn’t buy flowers or candies or chocolates. He didn’t understand those traditions and it didn’t interest him much. Mostly because you swore up and down that you didn’t need stuff like that – which you didn’t. So you were happy to accept whatever alternative he had.

And an impromptu gift for you was definitely not something he had up his sleeve. And why would it take night after night for him to complete such a simple task?

No, he was Up To Something.

You were okay with his little secrets even then. But when he didn’t show up for date night, that was when you had a big fucking problem.

Sans should’ve been here by now. You checked your phone for the time, tapping your foot against the floor as the hostess smiled politely. She beckoned you to follow her through the restaurant. It was Papyrus’s treat; he’d won some kind of big prize after raising a bunch of money for a local charity through clothing donations.

You’d gotten dressed up. A fancy thing that you were feeling a little self-conscious about in such a high-end place. You’d wanted to show it off to Sans, though. To have him ogle you the entire night until he couldn’t wait to peel it off.

Instead…

You sat at the restaurant. Alone. A sweating waiter nervously tugging at their collar as they tried to inquire where “the rest of your party” was. You tried texting him and calling him, but the line just rang and rang until it went to voicemail. The wine turned bitter and you just ordered yourself a slimy to-go box from the nearby fast food place, wolfing it down in the car as you headed home with tears in your eyes.

Sans didn’t even call back until nearly three in the morning.

“hey, you called me?”

You hung up on him.

He dialed back immediately.

“think we got disconnected.”

Click.

You turned your phone off and ignored him for the entire day, somehow dodging all of his attempts to find you at your usual places. You holed yourself up in your room and refused to answer the door. He didn’t have a key yet since he was still getting an all-clear from your landlord, so he didn’t get to make his stupid-ass, weak-ass apology to your face.

Papyrus was the one that dragged him over and made him say sorry, and only after he’d tricked you into opening the door.

Sans seemed to feel terrible about standing you up. “swear i didn’t mean to. didn’t even think…ah, shit.”

You took his words with a grain of salt. Bitter about it, but willing to forgive. Because you loved him. Still. While you weren’t the type of girlfriend to invade his privacy and pry, damn it all if it wasn’t driving you crazy to know what was going on.

You thought about asking him directly. But you had a feeling he would dodge the question. And sure enough, that prediction was confirmed as soon as you made it a point to try and intervene when he slipped away in the middle of the night.

Now you were at an impasse.

You hummed and stepped out of your car, thankful for a long weekend ahead to wind down from the stress at work. You really needed some time off away from your co-workers and all the drama.

Speaking of drama…was that Sans? Standing by your door?

“hey.”

“Hi.” You stood in front of him with a frown. “What are you doing here?”

“figured you’d wanna see me. been kinda…in n’ out lately.” He laughed sheepishly. “you got a minute? i wanted to show you somethin’.”

You weren’t feeling it. Like, at all. “Sans. I don’t really think that’s a good idea.”

“nah, trust me. you’ll like it.”

He was so hopeful. You knew that look – it was when he thought he’d crossed another barrier between your cultures and made a breakthrough to solidifying your relationship. And while you were still furious with him, you knew full well that he wasn’t going to ever trust you again if you turned him down this time.

“Ugh. Fine, I guess I’ve got some time.”

“great. i’ll drive.” He snatched the keys from your hand and took off back toward your car.

You really didn’t know what to expect. Settling in the passenger seat while he got comfortable and adjusted the seat. You were in charge of music, so you put something on to drown out the tense silence. He really didn’t seem all that bothered with the way things were right now, but you felt like if you didn’t distract yourself, you would snap.

It was pitch black by the time you arrived. It looked like a…was that a foundry? You couldn’t help but feel a mild spike of panic when he got out to open the padlocked gates, flicking the chains away like he’d done this a thousand times. Is this what he had been doing? Sneaking out to…just…break into an old building and rifle through it when no one else was around? Did you forget to explain that since his move to the surface that there was such a thing as trespassing?

He parked on the side of the building. Cut the lights off in your car. And turned to you with his grin illuminated from the moonbeams streaming in the window.

“whaddya think?”

“Are you…going to kill me?”

“what?” His expression tightened. “why would you say somethin’ like that?”

“Full offense, but this looks like the kind of place where you would lure me inside and tie me up somewhere before you straight up slaughtered me.”

He drummed his fingers on the dashboard. “you’re kinda killin’ the mood here, babe.”

“Pun intended?”

“no.”

Oh, so he was serious about this, then. “Well. What’s so great about it? That you have a cool view of a giant concrete wall? The dead trees surrounding the property? Or the suspicious gate that looks like it’s meant to keep a full grown man pinned inside as he’s too dangerous to reenter society?”

He snorted with laughter at that. “c’mon, i’ll show ya.”

He stepped out of the car and you followed him to the side door. It wasn’t even marked and blended in with the rest of the wall. He sure knew his way around.

You headed in and waited with bated breath, halfway expecting to have a large object smack against the back of your head so someone could render you unconscious.

But.

This was.

Fucking.

Weird.

Sans stepped back and put his hands in his jacket pockets. Beaming at you.

All around were people of various ages, sitting along their small stands and preparing. To. Make ceramics. With pottery wheels.

What. The. Fuck.

He greeted the older people and they chatted a bit. Some of the younger kids ran up and tugged on the hem of his jacket, trying to show him what they’d made in their daycare corner while their parents attended the…class? Is that what this was? There was clay everywhere, water for dipping their fingers in to shape their vision, and a teacher in the center of the room working along with them.

You weren’t sure what the hell to make of this. When you came in here, this was probably the very last thing you expected to see.

Sans headed back toward you. “heh, sorry. the kids can’t get enough of me. so. whaddya think now?” His tone was smug, as if he’d finally caught you. Outsmarted you. Figured out something that you didn’t even know about yourself.

“Is this where you’ve been going every night?”

“yep.”

“Leaving me to sleep alone?”

“uh…well…”

“And abandoning me at _Cherchez_ so I could embarrass myself in front of the most important people in town?”

Sans’s eyesockets went black. “still…mad about that, huh?”

“A little bit. Look, if you want to stay here, I’ll get Papyrus to pick you up. But I’m just gonna head home.”

Yeah, you were bitter as hell. Sans expected you to accept this with open arms, but it was ridiculous. This whole thing was ridiculous. He was more in love with this stupid pottery class than he was with you. He forgot about your date, cut down on your time spent together, refused to tell you anything about it, and for what?

Well. Maybe it was because of your reaction.

You stood in front of the car door and saw your reflection in the side mirror. Sans was probably embarrassed about this. That he’d found a hobby that he liked. That he met new people in a place that was pretty out of the ordinary. He might’ve just kept it from you because he thought you wouldn’t be open to it. That maybe you would talk down on him for it, or even…punish him for going to something that you had no shared interest in.

Damn it.

You stopped from opening the car door and Sans hunched over. Looking absolutely defeated.

“look, i'm—”

“I’m sorry, Sans.”

“what?” He gaped. “what the hell’re you sorry about? i’m the one that got caught up in this.”

“No. It’s…I’m glad you’re having fun. It’s nice that you’re making friends and…doing something with your free time. I just.” You lowered your gaze to your fumbling hands. “I…guess I’ve been a little jealous. Of whatever’s been catching your attention. I thought that maybe you were bored of me and that…”

“heh, are you serious?” He laughed. “no. come back in. the class is almost over.”

“Then why would we go back in?”

He didn’t take no for an answer and beckoned for you to follow him. You did, keeping close and wondering where everyone else had parked so that you hadn’t seen their cars when you pulled in.

True to his word, a lot of the students started packing up. They greeted him when heading toward the door and soon the entire room emptied out. It was quiet, save for the slight whirring of the kiln in the corner that they were using. Sans closed the door once the last of them finally managed to get in their goodbyes, putting the deadbolt in place and heading back to where you stood.

“see all this?”

“Uh huh.”

“humans are…” He chuckled. “pretty cool. all this technology you’ve made. hell, we didn’t have anythin’ like this underground.”

“Yeah, but you accomplished wayyy more than just…pottery. I mean, you literally harnessed the energy of magma near the core of the earth to power your entire city. It’s incredible.”

He shook his head and walked over to one of the wheels, dipping his hand in the remnants of clay and letting it stick to his fingers. “you don’t get it. your species is so damn versatile. n'…creative. who would’ve thought of this back where i came from? no one, that’s who.”

You really weren’t sure where he was going with this. “Um. Okay.”

“i wanted you…” He trailed off for a moment before steeling himself. “i wanted you to know how much i admire you. i know it’s not like you invented all this stuff yourself, but man, you really showed me how cool humans can really be. didn’t think much of ‘em before. saw the kids as a nuisance and the rest as tyrants, to be honest. but i’m glad i found someone who can prove me wrong.”

“Seriously?” You plopped down next to him on his seat near the wheel. “All of that praise for something this simple. You’re such a dork.”

“hey, you should try it before you narc on it.” He winked. “might as well. no one’s here.”

“What, pottery?”

“heh, yeah. unless you’re afraid you’re gonna get shown up by the little kids who hang around.”

You huffed. “Well? What do I do?”

You were going to show him, alright. He wasn’t going to get the best of you! 

Sans grabbed some fresh clay from the back, slapping it down on the wheel. It started to rotate while you stared at the lump almost nervously. It was so…shapeless. You could take it in a million different ways. When you thought about it earlier, accepting his challenge, you thought you would’ve had a much better idea of what to do.

You wiped your hands on your jeans and dipped them in the water, moving forward to carefully press up against the clay and see how it bent against your fingers.

“don’t.”

“What?!” You jumped and the entire column you’d been constructing toppled over.

Sans laughed. “oh my god. i mean, don’t knock it over.”

“Asshole.” You stuck your tongue out at him and he took it as an invitation, leaning forward to kiss you hotly. You had to admit, there was something interesting about trying to coordinate it without using your hands. You usually pinned him somewhere or held him up to ground the both of you, but that was…a little harder, considering the circumstances.

Sans watched you for a little while. You were getting frustrated. Nothing seemed to work the way you wanted it to. The clay was going lopsided, it kept crumbling when you applied the pressure you thought would work, and you were getting dizzy trying to see if it was anywhere near symmetrical. It didn’t help that he was practically breathing down your neck.

“seem a little, uh, tense there, babe.”

“I wouldn’t have to be if you gave me some space.” You felt the clay squish and give way. Shit! In the midst of your snappy remark you’d applied too much pressure!

“here, lemme give ya some help.”

He positioned himself behind you. Lingering just beyond the wheel and pressed against the small of your back, chin resting on your shoulder. His sleeves had been rolled up to spare him from any more of a mess, so his bare arms trailed down as he placed his hands on top of yours.

Wow, he really _was_ good at this! You felt a lot better about what you were doing when he was helping you, even if he had this strange glint in his eye when you snuck a glance at him. His fingers moved in sync with yours, guiding you, pushing you to places you never would’ve considered. Chunks of the clay stuck between your fingers and glued your hands together in a thin seam, the intimacy of his touch sending a hearty flush creeping up your neck.

_Oh…my…love…_

No.

Fucking.

Way.

“Sans.”

“wait.”

_My darling…_

“Are you KIDDING me right now???”

“heh heh heh, stop moving. you’re gonna mess us up.” He held you there with a burst of nearly inhuman strength, forcing you to rethink your attempts to leave.

_I’ve hungered for your touch…_

This wasn’t real. This wasn’t happening. He had _planned_ this entire thing. He left you high and dry on a date, for crying out loud! He made it seem like it was this huge secret. He kept you in the dark for so long, and for what? A surprise? A cheesy reference to some movie that people regarded with as much disdain as they did a classic? With the iconic song crooning from a radio hidden somewhere in the back?!

_A long, lonely time…_

He cupped your hands in his and peeled them away from the finished product. A perfect structure that could function as a vase if it was all done correctly. You gaped at it for just a moment before he pushed your foot off the pedal, halting it in its spin and angling his head to kiss you.

_And time goes by, so slowly and time can do so much…_

You enjoyed it anyway. He really _was_ a good kisser. And while both of your hands were completely caked in clay and muddy water, you couldn’t help but feel like this was probably the best time to indulge him. You just wished you could hold him and not worry about getting him dirty.

_Are you still mine?_

Sans chuckled in the midst of your passionate display. “so, uh. happy anniversary.”

Oh. OH. OH SHIT.

“A-Anniversary.”

“you forgot, didn’t you.”

“I….I mean, I…”

“i didn’t.” He grinned and planted another open-mouthed kiss along the expanse of your neck. “what, you surprised?”

“That you managed to set me off the trail for your ode to one of the most iconic romance movies of all time?”

“yep.”

“I love you.”

You didn’t even care about the mess it was going to make. You were gonna put your hands all _over_ this monster and enjoy every single second of it.

Papyrus came home in a good mood. Some of his co-workers brought him lunch for all his hard work. He stepped through, humming along a tune, and the eyesore immediately swam across his vision.

“SANS!!!”

His brother poked his head up from the couch. “hey, bro. you’re home late.”

“NEVER MIND THAT.” Papyrus tromped over to the shelf on the wall where the strange object was in full display. He plucked it up from its resting position and turned it over in his hands. “WHAT IS THIS? WHY IS IT IN OUR HOUSE LIKE A DECORATION WHEN IT IS CLEARLY TRASH???”

“Hey, we made that together!” You grinned at him, snuggling more into your boyfriend’s outstretched arm.

“WELL THEN I FEEL SO BADLY FOR YOU? THE CRAFTSMANSHIP IS DEPLORABLE??? I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU WERE DOING WELL IN YOUR MUD MELDING CLASSES!!!” He turned it over and looked at the signature on the bottom. Your name and Sans’, in all its lazy glory, with this year scribbled on the edge. It was hard to read among the cracks and dips in the…whatever it was. “IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE A…BOWL?”

“It was a vase. But it got, um, squished.”

“WELL THAT IS WHY YOU ARE _DELICATE_ IN THESE THINGS. IT’S VERY RUDIMENTARY, AND I AM DISAPPOINTED IN BOTH OF YOU.” Papyrus set it down with a heavy sigh. “I SUPPOSE WE CAN KEEP IT UP UNTIL YOU CRAFT SOMETHING MUCH MORE SUITABLE TO OUR INCREDIBLE AND AMAZING DÉCOR.”

You agreed and Papyrus left the room. Sans kept trying to stifle his wheezy chuckles.

“when are we gonna tell him?”

“We’re NOT.” You covered his laughing face with kisses to shut him up. “You were the one who pushed me.”

“you were the one who sat on it.”

“You were straddling me!”

“you locked me in place with your knees.”

“Pfft. Whatever!” You settled back into his embrace. “We can always try again tonight.”

He accidentally crushed the remote and the TV screen turned to static, drowning out your fit of giggles.

**Author's Note:**

>  **please consider commenting**! i love hearing from you guys!!!
> 
> want to request a fic? [**put one in my tumblr inbox**](http://echoflowertea.tumblr.com/ask)!
> 
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